Meg O'malley's Irish Parliament Bean Soup

I copied this recipe from recipezaar.com several years ago. I will rewrite it as the original, but I'm going to add some of my personal notes at the end. It is very easy to make.

• Ready In: 2 hrs 45 mins
• Serves: 12

Ingredients

• 2  lbs navy beans (dried)
• 1  ham bone
• 1  gallon water
• 1  medium onion, diced small
• 4  stalks celery, diced small
• 2  carrots, diced small
• 1  pinch salt
• 1  pinch pepper
• 1  teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 1  bay leaf

Directions

1. Rinse beans in cool water and soak overnight. In a 6-quart stock pot, add drained beans, ham bone, water, and seasonings and bring to a simmer. Continue to simmer over a medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until beans are soft (about 1 1/2 hours). Add vegetables and cook until tender and soup has thickened. Remove ham bone, adjust seasonings and enjoy with Irish Brown Bread or you favorite crackers.
2. Chef Matt: Meg O'Malley's.
3. Notes: I first cooked a bone-in ham by rubbing the surface with ground ginger and cloves; put in a "brown-n-bag" and pour in a small bottle of ginger ale. Seal and place in a 325* oven for 3 hours. To the soup, I add an extra carrot, more salt and pepper, an extra teaspoon of thyme and some of the ham that I have diced. YUM ! ! !